Electrical power is supplied by an electric utility to individual use sites by power line conductors which extend from the utility poles to a meter socket mounted on a convenient surface at the use site. The power line conductors are physically connected to line jaw contacts in the meter socket. Distribution conductors extend from load jaws mounted in the socket throughout the use site.
An electric power watthour meter is provided for measuring the power consumed by a use site by measuring the current drawn by the use site from the line to the load conductors. A watthour meter typically has a base on which metering components are mounted. Blade terminals extend from the base for interconnection in the socket line and load jaw contacts so as to place the meter in series between the power line conductors and the power load conductors. A dome historically formed of glass surrounds the electromechanical components mounted on the watthour meter base. The dome includes a mounting flange having slots which engage mating projections on the base so as to lock the dome to the base when the dome is rotated 10xc2x0 after connection to the base. A seal or key is used to then lock the dome to the base.
With the advent of electronic meters and automatic meter reading equipment, the glass dome has been replaced with a plastic dome or cover typically having a view window in an end wall for viewing an electronic display of power consumption. The plastic domes are still formed with a mounting flange with slots for engagement with a standard meter base carrying the blade terminals and metering components.
The watthour meter is installed in the socket and/or a socket adapter or socket extender mounted in the socket which also carries mating jaw contacts by inserting the meter blade terminals into the meter socket or socket adapterjaw contacts.
Although watthour meters typically remain in place for many years without removal, it still becomes necessary from time to time to remove the meter for accurately testing, repair, replacement or to add additional functionality to the meter socket or watthour meter itself The smooth, tapered, cylindrical shape of the watthour meter dome or cover makes it difficult to pull the meter from the socket. The dome itself would be a convenient place for a utility service person to grasp the meter and exert a pull-out force as the utility person would like to keep his or her fingers away from the meter mounting base which is generally in close proximity to the live power conductors and jaw contacts in the meter socket. However, heretofore there has been no convenient surface on a watthour meter dome for easy grasping by the utility service person to facilitate removal with low pull-out forces. Thus, it would be desirable to provide a watthour meter which is designed to facilitate easy removal from a meter socket or socket adapter.
When a watthour meter is installed in a meter socket or meter socket adapter mounted in a meter socket, it is critical that the meter line blades be properly oriented for insertion into the meter socket or meter socket adapter line jaw contacts. However, existing watthour meter domes have a round shape which lacks any external visual or tactile indication of a top point or portion of the meter which would insure that the line blades are properly orientated for engagement with the line jaw contacts in the meter socket or meter socket adapter. Without such visual or tactile indication, it is possible for the utility serviceperson to inadvertently insert the meter 90xc2x0 out of normal mounting orientation into the meter socket. This places the one line blade terminal and one load blade terminal of the watthour meter in a direct short position across the meter socket or meter socket adapter line jaw contacts. Such an electrical fault can cause injury to the utility serviceperson and/or damage to the meter socket as a result of a typically explosive short circuit at full line power.
It is also possible for the utility serviceperson to insert the meter 180xc2x0 out of normal mounting orientation into the meter socket or socket adapter. This places the meter in a mounting condition which causes the meter to run backwards thereby subtracting power. Indeed, this is common method of stealing electric power.
These mounting problems are exacerbated in the case of electronic meters which still have a round cross section; but are usually formed with an opaque cover which thereby eliminates any possibility of viewing the internal meter components to determine the proper orientation of the meter for installation in a meter socket or socket adapter. Even the display in such electronic meters is off or blank until the meter is installed in the socket such that the display cannot any visual indication of proper meter mounting orientation during installation.
Thus, it would be desirable to provide a watthour meter having a cover which is capable of indicating the proper mounting orientation of the watthour meter in a meter socket or meter socket adapter. It would also be desirable to provide such a proper mounting orientation indication which can be provided by a handle carried on the cover which also functions to facilitate easy removal of the watthour meter from the meter socket or socket adapter. It would also be desirable to provide a watthour meter cover which is capable of providing a standardized handle position which not only facilitates easy removal; but also provides a visual as well as tactile indication of the proper mounting orientation of the watthour meter for safe insertion into a meter socket or socket adapter.
The present invention is a cover for a watthour meter which has a handle carried on the cover to facilitate low pull-out force removal of the watthour meter from a meter socket or meter socket adapter.
In one aspect, the handle comprises a one piece member unitarily formed with the cover. In another aspect, the cover and handle are molded as a one piece unit.
The handle includes at least one arm extending from a body of the cover with a grip member connected to the at least one arm. Alternately, the handle comprises two arms extending from the body, with a cross member fixed between the two arms.
In one aspect, the handle is in the form of an integral extension of the body or a sidewall of the cover. An end lip is disposed at an angle to one end of the extension or arm and defines an inner finger grip surface.
In another aspect, the handle includes at least one or a pair of circumferentially spaced recesses formed in the body, each recess defining a finger grip surface.
In yet another aspect, the handle includes at least one or a pair of circumferentially spaced projections extending outward from the body of the cover, each projection defining a finger grip surface.
In yet another aspect, the handle comprises a U-shaped member having a central leg with side legs extending from opposite ends. The side legs are fixedly joined to the body to space the central leg from the body. This handle is also removable from the cover.
In yet another aspect, an ejector handle is mounted about the first or primary handle. At least one, or a pair of ejector arms are connected to the ejector handle and extend through the body of the cover to distal ends adapted to be disposed exteriorly of a base of a watthour meter to which the cover is mounted. The distal ends of each ejector arm are adapted to be moveable with respect to the base of the watthour meter upon movement of the ejector handle from a first to a second position. The distal ends of the ejector arms are thus forcibly urged against a mating surface, such as a watthour meter mount in a meter socket or the mounting rim on a ring style socket cover or socket adapter to begin the separation of the meter base blade terminals from the socket or socket adapter jaw contacts.
The present invention also contemplates a watthour meter having a cover with unique handles as described above.
The watthour meter with unique cover handles of the present invention provides significant advantages in terms of facilitating easy removal and, optionally, installation of a watthour meter, into or out of a watthour meter socket or socket adapter mounted in a watthour meter socket. The handles provide a convenient gripping surface for easy pull-out to separate the meter from the meter socket or socket adapter. At the same time, the handles do not interfere with the normal function of the cover or viewing of power consumption readout displays through the end wall of the cover.
The handles are provided in different aspects, several of which are unitarily formed as a one piece assembly with the cover, such as during molding of the cover, or removably attached to the cover by fasteners to provide the handle function without a significant increase in the manufacturing cost of the cover.
In one unique aspect, the ejector handle moves a pair of ejector arms which extend through the cover and the meter base and engage meter mounting surfaces, such as the mounting ring of a ring style socket cover or the mounting flanges within a ringless style socket, to facilitate easy separation of the meter blades from the meter jaw contacts.
The watthour meter with cover handles according to the present invention addresses a long time problem encountered with the prior use of watthour meters which lack a convenient surface to facilitate easy, pull-out from a meter socket or meter socket adapter. According to the present invention, the handles or gripping surfaces carried on the meter cover enable a utility serviceperson to easily grasp the cover handles and exert a smooth pull-out force to separate the meter from the socket or socket adapter jaw contacts.
The cover handles of the present invention may also be used to increase the installation safety of a watthour meter in a meter socket or socket adapter since the handles, when mounted at a position to indicate the normal mounting orientation of the watthour meter in a meter socket insure that the watthour meter line and load blade terminals are properly aligned with the corresponding line and load jaw contacts in the meter socket or socket adapter. Specifically, the mounting of the handle of the present invention at a position on the cover which would indicate visually as well as tactally the normal top of the watthour meter when the watthour meter is in its normal mounting orientation with respect to the meter socket jaw contacts, can provide a standardized indication of proper meter orientation prior to installation in the meter socket or socket adapter. This increases installation safety by minimizing the possibility of a 90xc2x0 our of orientation mounting of the watthour meter in the meter socket which can cause a dangerous electric fault. This also minimizes the possibility of mounting the watthour meter 180xc2x0 out of normal mounting orientation in a meter socket which is the common method used to steal unmetered electric power.